Conduit tractor



y 22, 1952 v c. E. BOUCHER 2,604,521

' couour: TRACTOR Filed June 9. 1948 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1 I o N o N *0 Q v iK x Q INVENTOR.

I Cqrmack E. Bouc/ler' J 22, 1952 c. E. BOUCHER 2,604,521

CONDUIT TRACTOR Filed June 9, 1948 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 INVENTOR. C or-mackE. Boucher Patented July 22, 1952 U E S 2,604,5215

DIHT mes-Tee Cormack-Eli BbueherflS eaitfl, Application- Junefl;1948;:SierialQNmfiZfiZfi ummy (c1.'1%i5 -377)EY 1v presentinventionrelates tqtractor deyic es. partik';111551115? adapted.v for use. incylindiricall cohdxiitsl'uch fasnpi'p'e'. lines. It is a general objectof the. present invention to provide va, new and. ir'fip'rbved'trzietor' for usem cylindrical conduits afid'whi'ch is .charateri'zedby its ebility'tq move rlltivel'm l ieaw'yfileads through pipelines-over relatively;greatdistaribesf' "AistilleftirthrQbhject. of the"present invention is; tbmpirbvidf a relatively. rugged; heavy" diitirtt etbrl fdrfiuseiinfcylindfical Conduits 'Such'mas Pipe 'lihesl ofJi'eltively lfirge internal, diameter. A ,Stillf'fiirther, Obj et f"thepresent invention is vto,1 rfoxzi'de;a; new and impnovedltraetor for useinflpipe flihes and which is, capable of adjustment i011 viseinednduits' of Tdiffrent internalfdi'ameter's; A"m,drewsp ecific objectof. the invention isliito provid new and improyed' traction, arrange:ment for' a conduit tractor. for insuringlfi'rm grip;-

ihyentiye, attention" is directed t6 the fol; lewi g' desci'iptiow takenin connection" with the accompanying drawings whi1ethefeatures' o f"novelty will be pointed out with greater par tieuiarityin the appendedclaims.

"Ii e'd iew g Elie-. is 'aisi 'eleyation; rpa ly ic i. ustr tin a ondu tractor" cone tru ted" m. a o an e w t on fd m' off'th nxe'senf v nt nzFi2 when; ew' he" conduit tractor ta'gkemalpngime "final- +2 :of: Fig; 311Fig- 3"15'5 a; cr oss' seeti'onal view""'take'hi lq a he 'ief o fi tenng; nw t -"draw s, 1 a ylindrical conquitis lch' qs apipe is shown at 'l[I and "within i'q h' flfifiq f f" th resen I nv ntm 5 hew}: The racmrrom e raij 'e rame? whiqh; for; rea'sqns "as Will' be pqinted out more"ully hereinafte is divided on itudinally; th w f mi qomn em n e yparts bngiindicaued hejrefel nc e1'cha .acter sil1 and lzl Arranged" end tit e"trac r ar a 'pllurality' 7 elements. showfl'iifthejdr' beingthtee-in'numbiar and'in'this' inst sistin g o f. wheels; [4,, l5 and I6. It willl-bfi under t wh t wh le a; iteat 'r um r 'Qf he'elsjyidediiat jeachlof thefoppbsite endsfa. H i o f th'reefi 'fireferredl'.Alscxiwhil'ithe tfatidnjel'e'ment. are, this instance, shown" aslconsistiiigqqf wheels, they mayiequally Well be invtheiorm of.continuous tread; belts' rorich ainsarraijgedfupen'. sprockets. 'I'he,wheels- I4; [5' 94316416 Tat each .end ..'of theframe are spacedfs'ub;

with ifub ber" tifes'l foi-lbthei high nfiietioh tre amen w; mer asgg.the, fi emamiiien emem of:

wall;

The ,wheels, Mign ends. of the. tract Shafts} l 8 .whichar n ally ofeach of the base frame mem h O posite re dsoi t e sha ifi ia ejpur ale';n wall p rtions of, theibase frame me eis aft 51 6' g fu the up x ed-iterm ategthei'r ends 19' beari' braielgets warm-"21 pending Iromth'efle'fi' e'memlgers z uit e source ive ow l mvil i n.? i "fa s" hiasan e eiar d 'Z wh 'is suspended rom"apairjbfa hm m t he ip p' it' le s, of whare s c red 9 P 99 r wa'q f he f baee ia imem r n Ai ai flf.SIimcket-33ia eim im e "up e-gear m t-6 fti n L The. pressure .w

3811 t; p pgo;

. 3 The block 43 is secured to a plate 44 extending between the archframe members 32, a spacer block 45 being provided between the block 43and the plate 44. The spring member 39 and, hence also, the wheels 16may be adjusted towardand away from the axis of the tractor by means ofth adjusting screw 46 extending between traveling nuts mounted in theouter ends of the pantograph bracket arms. For facilitating theinsertion of the tractor into a conduit, the wheels are lowered to aretracted position and, after the tractor is positioned within theconduit, the spring member 39 is elevated to urge the wheels I6 withconsiderable pressure into firm engagement'with the upper wall of thepipe. It will be apparent that the pantograph and adjusting screwarrangement 42, 46 constitutes a jack means which is arranged betweenthe tractor frame and the adjustable wheels IQ for positively urging thewheels with high pressure against the conduit walls. 'While thepantograph and screw arrangement '42, 46 is one specific form of jackmeans which has been found suitable, it is obvious that other forms ofsuitable jack means for accomplishing the same purpose will readilyoccur to one skilled in the art and which may be substituted for thatshown. The term jack means as employed in the claims is intended toinclude all such variations.

It will be understood by those skilled in the art that there is a normaltendency for conduit tractors to rotate about the axis of the conduit intraveling therethrough particularly in negotiating bends in the conduitand also depending upon the nature and characteristics of the loadattached to the tractor. It is important, therefore, that the springmember 39 and'the wheels 16 as well as the pantograph bracket armarrangement 42 be of relatively heavy dimensions so that, in the eventthat the tractor should become inverted in the conduit, the entireweight of the tractor will be adequately supported, and in addition, thespring member 39 will, notwithstanding' 'such inversion of the tractor,urge the driving wheels l4 and I5 into firm frictional engagement withthe walls of the conduit. With the arrangement shown, the tractor willbe positively retained in 'a predetermined longitudinal aligned relationwith the conduit axis irrespective of the rotation of the tractor aboutsuch axis. w Because of the tendency for the tractor to shiftrotationally about the conduit axis, coupling should be made to theconnected apparatus along" the line of the conduit axis so that suchrotational movements Will'notinterfere with the functioning of the otherapparatus which may be connected thereto. As shown, a '.coupling bracket5| is mounted on one end of the tractor with 'a spacer block 52 arrangedbetween the base of the bracket 5l and the base frame members II and [2.In order to facilitate negotiation of the pipe bends, a universal joint53 is illustrated attached. to the eye 54 f the bracket thelongitudinal' axis' of the universal element 53 coinciding with the axisof the tractor or, in fother words, the axis, of the conduit l0.The'uni'vers'al element includes a socket '55'for cooperativelyreceiving'a fitting '56 attached to another piece of apparatus by meansof bracket arms 51. The present invention, however, is not concernedwith the details of the apparatus to be used in conjunction with thetractor. Power may be supplied to theelectric motor 3! through aconductor cable (not shown) and through astral 4 which the operation ofthe motor may also be controlled. The cable may be anchored in anysuitable manner to the tractor.

The tractor as shown may be readily adapted for use in conduits ofdifferent internal diameters by adjusting the spacing between the wheelsand the longitudinal axis of the tractor. As previously described, thebase frame members H and 12 are longitudinally divided with theiropposite end portions secured together. with a spacer block 66 providedtherebetween. As previously mentioned, a spacer block 45 is alsoprovided between the base of the pantograph bracket 42 and the plate 44arranged between the arch frame members 32, The thickness of the spacerblocks 61? and 45 may be selected in accordance with the internaldiameter of any given conduit in order that the wheels of the tractorwill properly engage against the conduit walls in radial relationtherewith. It will be obvious, however, that, as the side frame membersl I and I2 are, spread apart by the varying size of the spacer blocks69, proper adjustment will be required to be made for the connection ofthe lower ends of the arch frame members 32 therebetween. As illustratedin Fig. 3, the

. bottom ends of the arch frame members 32 may be provided with lateralextensions 65 for facilitating anchorage thereof upon the base framemembers H and 2 for various degrees of separation thereof. Since thedistance between the motor and the driven shafts 25 is varied, thelength of the drive chains 34 will have to be correspondingly adjusted.Also, in order to maintain the eye of the coupling bracket 5| alignedwith the conduit axis, proper adjustment should be made in the thicknessof the spacer block 52 between the bracket base and the base frame ofthe tractor.

Having described the invention in what isfconsidered to be a preferredembodiment thereof, it is desired that it be understood that thespecific details shown are merely illustrative and that the inventionmay be carried out by other means.

I claim:

1. A tractor adapted for use in a cylindrical conduit, said tractorcomprising a frame, at least three'traveler elements mounted on saidframe adapted for engaging the wall of said conduit and for supportingsaid tractor for movement longitudinally of said conduit, said elementsbeing spaced substantially uniformly angularly apart about alongitudinal axis corresponding substantiallyto the conduit axis, screwadjustment means for one of said elements for effecting movement thereofin a direction toward and away from said axis for facilitating insertionof said tractor into a conduit with said one element retracted,resilient means mounting said one element on said frame whereby whensaid one element is adjusted into pressurable en.- gagement with theconduit wall firm engagement is efiected by allof said elements againstsaid co'nduitwall. V

2.A tractor adapted for use in a cylindrical conduit, said tractorcomprising a base frame,

at least three wheels arranged on opposite ends of said frame forsupporting said tractor for rolling movement longitudinally within saidconduit, said wheels at each end of said frame being spacedsubstantially uniformly angularly;

apart about a longitudinal axis corresponding substantially with theconduit axis, correspond ing wheels at opposite ends of said frame beingincunteu cr rotation] in 'acommonplane pe'xe "tending parallel'fwith andf intersecting said lo'ngitu'din'al "axis; a "longitudinal spring member'extending in the directiong'of said longitudinal axis; one'p'air'o'f'corresponding wheels at opposite ends of said-frame beingmounted upon the opposite ends" of said sprifig member, adjustable jaek'means r'mourited iipon' said frame and supporting said spring member atthe center thereof, said adjustable: jaQkmeans-"being operative forshifting said spring member toward and away from'sai'd longitudinalaxis. v .13; A 'tractof'a'clapted foruse in a cyl" drical conduit, saidtractor comprising "a basei 'fra'me, three wheels arranged 'at "oppositeends "of said frame j for supporting said tractor fcr"'ro11ing n'o've'ment longitudinally within said conduit," said wheels" at each endof said frame being'spaced substantially uniformly angularly apart abouta longitudinal axisco'rresp'o'nding substantially to the'con'duit axis,'co'rrespondingwheels at opposite ends of said frame being rotatable ina common plane parallel with and intersecting said longitudinal axis, alongitudinal spring member adjustably mounted on said frame andsupporting one pair of corresponding wheels at opposite ends thereof,the remaining two pairs of corresponding wheels being mounted onopposite sides of said base frame, said base frame including two similarlongitudinal complementary frame members bolted relatively together atopposite end portions, said frame members being laterally separable andadapted for receiving spacer elements between said end portions foradapting said tractor for use in conduits of different internaldiameters. I

4. A tractor adapted for use in a cylindrical conduit, said tractorcomprising a base frame, three wheelsarranged at opposite ends of saidframe for supporting said tractor for rolling movement longitudinallywithin said conduit, said wheels at each end of said frame being spacedsubstantially uniformly angularly apart about a longitudinal axiscorresponding substantially to the conduit axis, corresponding wheels atopposite ends of said frame being aligned with each other and rotatablein a common plane parallel with and intersecting said longitudinal axis,adjustable bracket means mounted on said frame and supporting one pairof corresponding aligned wheels, said base frame including twocomplementary longitudinal members releasably secured together atopposite ends, said members being adapted for lateral separation and forreceiving spacers between said opposite ends, one aligned pair of saidwheels being mounted on each of said frame members.

5. A tractor adapted for use in a cylindrical conduit, said tractorcomprising a base frame, at least three wheels arranged on opposite endsof said frame for supporting said tractor for rolling movementlongitudinally within said conduit, said wheels at each end of saidframe being spaced substantially uniformly angularly apart about alongitudinal axis corresponding substantially with the conduit axis,corresponding wheels at opposite ends of said frame being mounted forrotation in a common plane extending parallel with and intersecting saidlongitudinal axis, a pair of parallel drive shafts journalled onopposite sides of said frame and extending longitudinally thereof, apair of corresponding aligned wheels at opposite ends of said tractorbeing operatively connected to each of said shafts, a motor mounted onsaid frameand driving-connections between 'said' m'otor and'each ofsaidshafts. I l

6. A- tractor :adapted for use in acylindri'cal conduit, said tractorcomprising a longitudinal frame, at least three' traveler elementsmounted on said frame' adapted-for engaging the wall of said conduit andfor supporting said tractor for movement longitudinally of saidconduit,-.said

elements I being spaced substantially uniformly angularly apart about-alongitudinal: axis corresponding substantially to the conduitaxis, .ad-'justable f bracket means mounted on' said" frame and-supp'orting one ofsaid elements, saidlbracket means beingretractable to'per mitv loweringof,

said one element to facilitate I insertion of said tractor into aconduit, and adjustable jack means operatively connected between saidframe and saidbracket means whereby said bracket means maybe positivelyextended after insertion of said tractor'into a conduit-to causepressurable engagement 'o'f said-'one'element with the 1 internalsurface of said conduit.

7. A conduit tractor including an elongated base frame, a pair ofdriving traveler elements mounted in a transversely spaced relation uponsaid frame for engaging the inner surface of a conduit at points spacedapart transversely of the conduit a distance less than the diameterthereof, a third traveler element, adjustable means mounting said thirdtraveler element on said frame for movement toward and away from saidframe, said three elements being spaced substantially uniformlyangularly about a longitudinal axis corresponding substantially to theconduit axis, said adjustable means including manually operableadjustable jack means for positively shifting said third element from aretracted position to an extended position with respect to said frame,whereby after insertion of said tractor in a conduit with said thirdelement retracted, said third element may be positively extended intopressurable engagement with the inner surface of a conduit and to causesaid pair of elements also to pressurably engage opposite conduitsurface portions.

8. A conduit tractor including an elongated base frame, a pair ofdriving traveler elements fixedly journalled in a transversely spacedrelation upon said frame for engaging the inner surface of a cylindricalconduit at points spaced apart transversely of the conduit a distanceless than the diameter thereof, a third traveler element, adjustablesupport means mounting said third traveler element on said frame formovement toward and away from said frame, said adjustable support meansbeing of heavy construction and capable of supporting said tractor in aninverted position within a conduit, said third element being arrangedbetween said pair of elements and on the side of greatestcircumferential spaced relationship thereof, said adjustable meansincluding manually operable reversible jack means for positivelyshifting said third element toward and away from said frameindependently of said pair of elements, whereby after insertion of saidtractor in a conduit with said third element retracted, said thirdelement may be positively extended into pressurable engagement with theinner surface of a conduit and for maintaining said pair of elements inpressurable contact with opposite conduit surface portions, irrespectiveof relative angular position of said tractor within said conduit.

9. A conduit tractor including an elongated frame, a pair of drivingtraveler elements mount- 7 ed in a transversely spaced relation uponsaid frame for engaging theinner surface of a conduit at points spacedapart transversely of the conduit a distance less than the diameterthereof, a third traveler element, adjustable bracket means mountingsaid third traveler ,element on said frame for movement toward and awayfrom said (frame; said third element being arranged 'bemay be,positively extendedinto pressurable eii-i gagement with the innersurface of a conduit and to cause said pair of elements also topressurably engage opposite conduit surface portions.

, V CORMACK E. BOUC HER."

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 621,018 Benjamin Mar. 14,1899774,525 Mack Nov. 8, 1904 1,132,691 Sieben Mar. 23, 1915 1,278,453 FrankSept. 10, 1918 1 1,717,986 Liebau June 18, 1929 1,860,385 Crapo May 31,1932 1,995,473 7 Giachetti -1--- Mar. 26, 1935 2,089,597, Carter Aug.10, 1937 2,455,273 Schott et a1. Nov. 30,

